Korean War veteran's remains returning home 65 years later

He died as a prisoner of war nearly 65 years ago, but soon an American soldier's remains will be making the journey home.

Army Sgt. Floyd James Robert Jackson was captured during the Korean War in December of 1950. Just a few months later, not yet even 21 years old, he would die in a POW camp along the Yalu River.

As our partners at KMGH report, Jackson's remains had been missing since his death, but using dental records and DNA samples from his family, they were recently positively identified at a military facility in Hawaii.

"It's the phone call Joann Mueller hoped she would get during her lifetime," the KMGH anchor said.

"I couldn't believe what I was hearing," Mueller said.

That was Jackson's niece Joann Mueller. As The Denver Post reports, she and her family have worked over ten years to determine the whereabouts of Jackson's remains.

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Korean War veteran's remains return home 65 years later

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Korean War veteran's remains returning home 65 years later

Photo credit: KMGH

Photo credit: KMGH

Photo credit: KMGH

Photo credit: KMGH

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"In a way I think he was trying to tell God that he wanted to come home. So, now he's coming home."

Once Jackson's remains were identified, the family was presented several medals earned by their late relative - including the Prisoner of War Medal and a Purple Heart.

The veteran's remains are now on their way back to Colorado, where he grew up.

He's set to be laid to rest with full military honors at a funeral open to the public.

"How do you want your uncle to be remembered?" the reporter asked.

"He looked like he was a happy guy. He made friends easily. He loved his family," Mueller said.